---o---
While Li Zihan was getting cozy with the girls, the city-state of Uruk was a hive of activity.
At the center of it all, Gilgamesh's duties were truly arduous.
The king, who had returned from his quest some time ago, sat enthroned, reading through clay tablets at an astonishing speed. Before he could even finish one, his other hand would involuntarily reach for the next.
In a mere instant, the overworked Wise King had identified the problems on two separate tablets.
He narrowed his crimson eyes and roared at the ministers awaiting his orders below.
"Fools! Do not make your king repeat himself! The updates on the frontline reports must be faster! Scribe! Halve the interval for producing new tablets and increase the quantity by two cartloads!"
The man, whose position was that of a scribe, snapped to attention and loudly proclaimed, "As you command!"
The Wise King, high on his throne, paid his subordinate no mind, instead slamming a tablet in his hand onto the ground.
His furious demeanor made the architects waiting on the other side tremble.
"Is this the fortress city blueprint you designed?!"
The Wise King, now holding a new tablet, raised his voice by several octaves.
"Utterly idiotic! Redo it!!"
"A fortress city is still a city! A place for people to live! It's filled with nothing but armories! Do you all want to sleep on the streets?!!"
"Yes, Your Majesty," the head architect replied, his forehead beaded with sweat, as he and his colleagues retreated.
The Golden King continued to read the intelligence on the tablets, issuing orders to the ministers awaiting his command.
"The supply shipment is thirty percent less than last month. Were they attacked by demonic beasts?"
"Dispatch fifty of our finest soldiers to clear out the demonic beast nests along the route. Then, scout the situation near the alternate route. There can be no problems with the supplies."
Toss away a tablet, pick up a new report, issue a clear and reliable command—this was Gilgamesh's daily routine.
It was a long time before the ministers awaiting orders had dispersed and the clamor in the ziggurat had faded.
Before the next batch of tablets and ministers arrived, the Golden King put down the tablet in his hand and pressed his temples firmly, forcing himself to stay alert.
"My king, are you tired?" a veiled woman asked softly. She was Siduri, the head priestess of the temple, responsible for assisting the king.
She had been by Gilgamesh's side as he handled countless affairs, but she had never seen him look so ragged.
"Or is there a problem with the situation at the Northern Wall?"
"This king is not tired. I am merely contemplating how to repel the enemy."
Gilgamesh's voice was still strong, but the exhaustion etched between his brows could not be hidden.
The reconstruction of Uruk into a fortress city had brought an endless stream of troubles, big and small. Managing all these matters was beyond the capability of any ordinary official; only he could personally coordinate everything.
The famous Marquis of Wu Township from the Later Han dynasty had handled his military affairs in the same manner.
And then...
He worked himself to death.
Now, Mr. Gilgamesh was managing the city-state of Uruk in the same way, making one wonder if he might just suddenly drop dead one day.
However, today's workload seemed surprisingly light.
Gilgamesh, who had found a rare moment of respite, frowned, sensing something was amiss.
Then, he naturally thought of the source of the anomaly.
"Speaking of which, why haven't I received any complaints today about that neurotic goddess who was abandoned by her own father?"
Gilgamesh, who used to receive complaints about that useless goddess almost daily, quickly pinpointed the reason for his lighter workload.
"King Gilgamesh, please show some respect for our city's patron deity," the head priestess Siduri said with a sigh, looking at the Golden King who held absolutely no reverence for their goddess.
"Is there anything worth respecting about that useless goddess who does nothing but cause trouble?"
The king, who usually sounded merely displeased when speaking of gods, now had a voice filled with rage as he mentioned that particular useless goddess.
"After I deal with the Demonic Beast Goddess at the Northern Wall, I will convene a citizen's assembly and fire that useless goddess!"
Clearly, the crisis of unemployment was looming over a certain useless goddess's head.
Seeing the king who was beginning to fly into a rage, the head priestess Siduri couldn't help but sigh again.
She couldn't mention Ishtar anymore. If she did, the furious king might actually convene the councils of nobles and citizens to replace their patron deity.
It was best to change the subject.
"Right, I remember you said that the final Master of Chaldea is about to arrive."
Siduri, for whom protecting the position of her corresponding goddess was no easy task, mentioned another organization.
"You mean those people from the observatory?" Gilgamesh frowned, thinking.
"Will you not be sending someone to greet them?" the priestess continued, having heard Gilgamesh mention that the last Master of humanity was a hero who had conquered six Singularities.
"This king already tossed that job to Merlin."
Gilgamesh stated his prior arrangement succinctly.
"Thinking about it now, Merlin should have already set out."
"If it is Lord Merlin, I am certain he will be able to bring the Master of Chaldea here."
---o---
Meanwhile, back in Ishtar's temple, Li Zihan was staring at his system, lost in thought.
"Hey, hey, when did you get an update?"
The young man had inexplicably found a new "Synthesis" sub-panel in his system interface and was deep in contemplation.
"Oh, you mean that."
The system, which had always possessed an androgynous nature, spoke up upon hearing Li Zihan's confusion.
"That's a function that was somehow activated after I read some of the data from your Authority—Ame-no-Murakumo—while I was bored."
"If you look around, you should also find a 'Drop' function that was generated from reading your 'Fire-Thief' Authority."
The so-called Ame-no-Murakumo was an Authority Li Zihan had stripped from Susanoo.
Its effect was identical to his divine tool, the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi: to seize the nature of another's magical energy or Authority and superimpose or fuse it onto other things.
In short, it was an extremely disgusting Authority.
But that wasn't the main point today.
The point was, the system could read Authority data and unlock new functions?
Li Zihan fell silent.
Hey, hey, hey, don't tell me this system is actually super OP?
"Ah, I forgot to tell you before. I can unlock system functions by reading things that possess the power of rules."
The system, still speaking in the same dorky tone as Ishtar, said sheepishly.
"I forgot to mention it."
Holy shit.
So I've been using a system with no software installed this whole time!
"Can you give me a rundown of your new functions? Don't tell me they're just bootleg versions of Ame-no-Murakumo and Fire-Thief."
Li Zihan raised an eyebrow.
"How could that be?"
The system reacted vehemently, as if it had been scorned.
"My functions were merely triggered by encountering similar laws; I'm not imitating your Authorities. How could they be the same?"
"Oh, so that's how it is."
Li Zihan nodded, beginning to ponder.
"I can probably guess what the 'Drop' system does. So, can you explain what this so-called 'Synthesis' function is all about?"
"Basically, it allows you to fuse two things of a similar nature together."
The system explained, sounding like a crafting machine from any number of video games.
"For example, if you fuse your Authority, 'Even After Three Sunsets,' with the White Stallion incarnation you took from Kusanagi Godou, you'll most likely obtain a single Authority that can both transport the fire of the sun and revive you three times."
"So it's just combining two powers into one?"
Li Zihan raised an eyebrow.
"I can do that even without synthesis."
"After synthesis, the properties of the lower-quality ability may be absorbed by the higher-quality one."
"And the result is a high-quality ability that retains the properties of both?"
Li Zihan seemed to understand.
"Yes, that's right."
The system, which was perhaps not so useless after all and just lacked software, let out a smug laugh.
"Impressive, right?"
"Uh-huh, super impressive," the host praised his system in a flat, insincere monotone.
But in his mind, he was thinking of something else entirely.
How should I test this new function?
Fuse the White Stallion with 'Even After Three Sunsets'?
There doesn't seem to be much difference between having those two fused or separate.
At most, the impact force of the White Stallion might increase a bit.
But Li Zihan's primary method of attack was using the Herrscher of Reason's core to simulate other Herrschers. Unless he was facing an enemy with a specific weakness to sun gods, he rarely used the White Stallion.
After all...
Its base temperature was only four thousand degrees. The fact that it could melt steel was thanks to the magical energy powering it.
To unleash the power its original owner, Verethragna, had displayed—equivalent to a solar flare—was a bit difficult for Li Zihan, who had only acquired the Authority a few days ago.
So, what should he do?
Vaguely recalling that his own Clairvoyance was focused on the future, the young man fell into deep thought.
In this world, there seemed to be a certain someone with EX-rank Clairvoyance that corresponded to a God's-eye view of the present.
And Goetia also possessed EX-rank Clairvoyance that could see through the past and future, though it leaned toward viewing the past.
Fusing with either of them would be a qualitative leap.
The young man, who had suddenly taken an interest in a certain Grand Scammer and Goetia, felt a slight smile grace his lips.
"I'm thinking, maybe I should go find the people from Chaldea now, and while I'm at it, pay a visit to Merlin."